The first planting session which took place on the first 3 days of October was very successful. Adult volunteers from the Allotment and Garden Society, the local community, children from Conifers and Easebourne C.E. Primary School, the Rainbows and Brownies planted 1,000 bluebell bulbs and hundreds of wild flower plugs and seeds. Over 90 children helped in this planting session and we were so grateful for their help.

The next opportunity to get involved is week beginning 12th November when we will be planting hundreds of heathers, hedgerow saplings and trees.

You don’t need to be green fingered to help us with the next phase of the Park, which is due to begin early next month. You can choose to help for a few hours in the morning or afternoon, for the whole day or even more days if you are free!

The first planting session which took place on the first 3 days of October was very successful. Adult volunteers from the Allotment and Garden Society, the local community, children from Conifers and Easebourne C.E. Primary School, the Rainbows and Brownies planted 1,000 bluebell bulbs and hundreds of wild flower plugs and seeds. Over 90 children helped in this planting session and we were so grateful for their help.

The next opportunity to get involved is week beginning 12th November when we will be planting hundreds of heathers, hedgerow saplings and trees.

You don’t need to be green fingered to help us with the next phase of the Park, which is due to begin early next month. You can choose to help for a few hours in the morning or afternoon, for the whole day or even more days if you are free!

Easebourne Parish Council have three new opportunities for volunteers to get involved in the creation of Easebourne Park, which is adjacent to Wheelbarrow Castle.

On three Mondays: 17th and 24th September 2018 and 1st October 2018, we will be joined by Darren Rolfe from West Sussex County Council who will the tasks which include installation of a new ramp and two sets of steps which improve access to the Park for everyone.

All equipment will be provided as well as tea and biscuits, so if you can spare a few hours or would just like further information, please get in touch! Contact parishclerk@easebourne.org or Sharon on 07342 166 188.

The Parish Council are organising the annual Spring litter pick for Saturday 14th April, meeting in the Primary School car park on Wheelbarrow Castle at 9.30am. All equipment will be provided, including gloves, bags, hi-vis vests and litter grabbers. Please spread the word and come along to spend an hour making our village a cleaner place. All ages are welcome. If you can definitely make it please let our Parish Clerk know so we can make sure we have enough equipment. Thank you and see you on the 14th!

The iconic telephone box opposite the Duke of Cumberland Arms in Henley has been fully refurbished by the Parish Council and will shortly be put to good use again. It will house a life saving heart-start defibrillator that the council is purchasing with the support of the Communities Heartbeat Trust and with a generous donation by the owner and patrons of Duke of Cumberland Arms. This key piece of medical equipment has now been installed. Appropriate training sessions are in the process of being arranged, perhaps in the Duke, and will be widely advertised by the Parish Council.

The newly repainted K6 telephone box, resplendent in a coat of its original bright red paint, was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott to celebrate the King George Silver Jubilee. Over 20,000 were placed in every town and village by the end of the 1920s and the K6 had its 80th birthday in 2016. The Parish Council trusts that by injecting a new lease of life into this phone box it will continue to serve the wider community around Henley, in its new role, for many more decades.

Defibrillator training will be held at and co-ordinated by the Duke of Cumberland Arms in April for local residents who wish to apply.

Pictured from left to right, councillor Ian Milne, the Cardiac Science G5 defibrillator and the owner of the Duke of Cumberland Arms, Simon Goodman.

The 2nd of our new notice boards was installed last weekend at the corner of Dodsley Grove and Dodsley Lane. We hope you agree it’s a massive improvement on the old wooden board! The 1st of the new notice boards was installed outside the village shop in December. Pictured here after installing the board is Trevor, one of our Councillors involved in the project.

With the days getting longer we are on a mission to establish a greater Speedwatch presence within the village. The most recent session logged over 40 drivers exceeding the speed limit in under an hour! However we need more volunteers. It’s an interesting role, you’ll always be working with another volunteer and for no more than an hour at a time. Some simple training on using a Speedgun is provided. If you can help please contact our Parish Clerk or complete the volunteer form, click here, for more information.

A big thank you to all the volunteers who helped with the village litter pick on Saturday. With a good number of helpers we were able to cover most of the village. It is always surprising that so many bags are filled and then always slightly depressing when a few days later the litter returns. The Parish Council is looking at the viability of installing bins in some of the litter hotspots.

It was fantastic to see a merry band of willing volunteers wanting to do their bit for the village and getting stuck into the burial ground tidy up tasks this morning. We even had two children lending a hand. Over four hours, the group has raked up the leaves, trimmed the hedges, removed overhanging and loose tree branches, strimmed between the grave stones, mowed as much of the ground as we could bearing in mind how wet the grass was and disposed of all the cuttings and rubbish. We even went as far as trimming back the overgrowing bushes running along the footpath at the bottom of Wheelbarrow Castle field towards the steps. The only rewards, the opportunity to meet new people, a cup of tea and cake and the satisfaction of putting something back into the community. Thank you very much to all those involved.

If you are interested in other volunteer projects please do go to the Parish Council website to register your details.

Saturday, 14th January 2017 from 9.00am and throughout the morning.

The main tasks will be to cut back the perimeter hedge, neaten around some of the graves and clear out the newly repaired shed.

Please come along for the morning or just an hour dressed for gardening (gloves, strong footwear, safety glasses/goggles if you are strimming) and please bring any tools you have such pruning shears, loppers, petrol strimmers, or any tools that you consider would be helpful to complete the tasks above.

PLEASE NOTE: if the weather is particularly wet or icy it may be necessary to postpone this event, so do please check the Easebourne Parish Council website (home page) before leaving home.